Posted by kathryn in Vegetables

Carrots are packed full of good nutrition.

Not only are they high in fibre, low in fat and kilojoules, but they’re also an excellent source of the antioxidant and vitamin A precursor: beta-carotene.

In fact carotenes are what make carrots their lovely orange colour.

Carrots are also a useful vegetable and are generally cheap.

They can be grated raw and put in salads and sandwiches, used in stir frys, baked in foil in the oven, steamed, used in soups and stews. Even made into a cake.

Carrot Myths & Trivia:

• Carrots are believed to make you see better in the dark, but this is not necessarily true. A vitamin A deficiency affects your eyesight. Carrots are rich in beta-carotene, a vitamin A precursor. So if you’re low in vitamin A, eating carrots could help. However, if you’re not deficient, carrots won’t help you see in the dark.
• Eating too many carrots turns you orange: This one is true and there’s even a fancy name for the condition: hypercarotenaemia. It basically means there’s too much carotene in the blood and it makes your skin look slightly orange. It’s not dangerous and will soon go away once you cut back on the carrot consumption

Nutritional Info:

100g of carrots yields:

• Energy: 101 kJ
• Protein: 0.8g
• Fat: 0.1g
• Carbohydrate: 5g
• Fibre: 3.3 g fibre
• Water: 88.5g
• Sodium: 43mg
• Potassium: 260mg
• Calcium: 31mg
• Magnesium: 10mg
• Beta-carotene: 10,350mcg
• Niacin: 0.9mg
• Vitamin C: 6mg

Carrot photograph by Jek in the Box.

24 October, 2006